The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1887-01-13

ted. every dollar OF them 10 secureu
by b, nd In conformity with the statute, and thus
tbev nave been made to serve the double purpose
of accommodating public want while greatly ADD
Ing to their own material value Ihe institutions
they represent receive an income nov" where ouel-
wise they would not derive cent OF proht; the
money tina, was withheld from pubic circulation,
and ueslessly tied up in our vaults, has been re-
turned to the hands of the people, ana taxation
has been reduced to the lowest possible rate III
these funds amounted to millions instead OF S24o,
CO. it would be wise craftsmanship 10 use them IN
the same way r,,us
| Notwithstanding the stsct that the running ex-
! penses Of government are constantly giowlng
larger 1t is gratifying to know that here IN IeXaS
they are ore than Offset by the steady, heathy In
crease in taxable values which prevail In every sec
ton and characterize every branch OF industry ana
| trade
/ desire to specially impress en- the legislature
the importance of throwing all necessary reetric,
ton around municipal governments, county ana
CITY, relative TO the creating of debts and leVylnS
taxes. 1t is our experience that all local govern
| ments have an universal tendency to levy all the
| taxes law will permit Too much caution cannot
DO given this branch of legislation and while con
sidering il we might remember with prOht the
axiom that "a people who are in debt are IN siaV-
cry" For all necessary public buildings ana I'M
provements they should have ample power, put TOT
Injuries and enterprises of doubtful expectancy
the lines should be closely drawn II some system
coald be devised by which to leseen or avoid the
present excessive rates for collecting revenues, IL
would greatly reduce taxation. Some relief might
be had ON this score by requiring the citizen to 90
forward and pay his taxes to the party appointed
to receive the came In each county Or, In case OF
default the legal costs of collecting could be added
to the amount due, thus reimbuIsing the officer In
the event If his having to 90 ont and make collec
tons
nected with this question. In many counties of
this state the costs of collecting and assess
ing, when added to the amount paid
them for free school purposes, more
,ho no tntu nj n thpSp cOuDtipa
The result is that this immense territory not only
does not pay one dollar towards the support OF
the government but it actually draws on the other
sections for lite educational and legal sustenance
invite the attention of the legislature to this in
equality. and suggest that an appropriate remedy
he provided for its rectfcation.
SCHOOLS, UNIVERSITY AND ASYLUM LANDS. ,,o,
Under the operation OF the act sof April IL, 1885,
the land board has sold of the school lands 3,OU0-
0O acres; of the university lands 2,C acres, and
of the asylum lands l77,OOO acres, at an average
price of 50 per acre These lands have been sold
to actual settlers only. In the act referred to 1s
found the authority to lease.
would remind the Legislature that 1t is no easy
matter to change the ideas and habits OF a people
when those ideas and habits have been INDUCED In
for az without hindrance or restraint. And az
no former administration even attempted to utilize
the peoples grass, or derive entail from the I'M
occupied lands of the state government, it is no!
to be wondered at that the laws passed during my
term of office, on this most important question,
should excite some little opposition from inter
| ested parties, and cause them to seek means to
avoid and defeat these laws If possible People
who have been accustomed to Craze their cattle
free of charge on tho state lands may he slow to
approve the order of things which aims to make
them pay for benefits conferred; but l have no
doubt that in very sh ri period the principle OF
dealing with the state as one would with an lndl-
vidual will be universally recognized, and that
stockmen ond others will willingly-aye, gladly
render to the commonwealth fair equivalent for
those privileges which they have so long enjoyed
gratis
There is no penalty affixed by the act of 1888 for
using the public lands without authority. nor is
there adequate means provided to enable those
who would execute said law to successfully do so.
The enclosure act of 1884 was not intended or de-
| signed to aid or amend the act of 1883, but was
simply enacted with the view of preventing illegal
fence cutting.
1t was asserted an urged by fence cutters and
their apologsts that the large capitalists and stock
rsisers were monopol zirg all the grass and encos
ing vast areas Of land to which they had no legal
right, and-to meet the emergency of the time
! the enclosure act was passed at the special ses-
sion of 1884.
urged that the unlawful enclosure of public lands
he made felony, fence cutting having already
been declared q penitentiary offense. Failing in
this effort the executive suggested that the crime
denounced in the act of 1884 should be prosecuted
in some interior Jurisdiction. All these efforts,
however, failed, and the act became law without
attaching to it any of those necessary provisions.
The fault is not in the system of leasing. hhe
of the board.
twas urged by thoughtless persons that the
governor should take the army and by force de-
stroy these supposed illegal fences, thus judging
for himself questions that could only be deter
mined by the courts. This, too, at the very time
when the courts were deciding that the law on the
subject had NJ been violated. 1t is hardly neces-
sary to say that this invitation was promptly de-
clined; for well might it be insisted that where
notorious murderer was acquitted by the jury,
or where it was evident he would be,
,tp
have hm executed The time has not yet arrived
when, in Orcrnments protesting to be republican,
& g governor of 1! state can be invested with an-
thority 70 determine beforehand questions that
belong of right to the tribunals of the country, and
hope such day will never come. iii should, |
for one will neither seek nor accept any such al-
thority. Even the action here referred 10 vas
urged in the face of the fact that proposition to
engraft such authority in the bill (act OF lS) was
promptly voted down, az it should have been, by
your predecessors. Imagine, if you can, the eX,
ecutiye of exas committing by force of arms tie
identical Oifrnses which would send other citizens
to the lenentia y, and for the discovery of whose
perpetrators he WAS at that moment Offering large
rewards
THE LEASE LAW.
Many objections nave been advanced ab initio.
against th. principle of leasing our public lands
Its sste to say that at least "ne-half of our 81
domain will not he sold ut remunerative prices
within the next fifty years, and unless they are
leased the state cannot possibly derive any rev
enue from them That the lands are now held at
too high figure have not the slightest doubt. |
am also well satisfied that large proportion of
them ahould he placed on the market ut less than
81 per acre, the present price. Better
for the state We're this scale re-
vised, and better for those in search of
homes were the figures 30 reduced as to hold out
an inSucement to the actual settler to people and
cultivate our untenanted territory. Imperfect as
the system is nOw We find that the schools derive
an annual revenue of S 900 from leases alone
and an annual interest of son, 600 on sales
The constitution and laws set apart Onehalf the
public lands for the benefit of free schools have
never known las it was dORe when | had no con-
n0ction with the administration of the govern
menp how or in what manner the SCHOOLS Obtained
their half or like quantity for the lands given to
build he new capitol, and which were cold under
the tifty-cents -an-sfre act.
Much Of tue confusion arising in the disposition
OF the lands, both by sales and leases has been
caused by the number of persons composing the
land board COnceding that each member has
been equally patriotic and equally faithful to the
public trust from the common standpoint and
Judgment OF EACH still tbs differences in opinion
which have frequently arisen have led to constant
changes in the mode of selling and leasing, always
resulting in compromises of some kind, and sell
dom rejecting the opinions of a single member.
81